Over the past few weeks I’ve been reading the fascinating biography Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. I’m a big fan of biographies and autobiographies of entrepreneurs and this one doesn’t disappoint. Here are a few notes from the book:
- Rockefeller’s dad was a fake doctor with wives and kids in different states
- Rockefeller got his start as an accountant for a business in Cleveland that imported commodities
- Rockefeller started his own company in his 20s importing commodities and eventually realized refining oil was more lucrative
- Rockefeller’s company, Standard Oil, set up unfair partnerships with railroads that resulted in significantly lower shipping costs, which helped put many competitors out of business
- Rockefeller moved from Cleveland to NYC as more and more business was being done on the East coast and internationally
- Rockefeller had a daily lunch with his direct reports and that’s how they coordinated everything in the late 1800s
- Rockefeller was an extremely devout Baptist, a teetotaler his entire life, and funded many Baptist causes
- Rockefeller donated money for the original Spelman College in Atlanta and paid for many of its buildings over the years
- The University of Chicago was founded and funded by Rockefeller and has his name in the official university seal
- Rockefeller funded the Rockefeller Institute of Medical Research, and is credited with large scale philanthropy efforts around medical research, even though he was a devout believer in homeopathic remedies
- Rockefeller retired in his 50s and lived well into his 90s
Rockefeller built one of the first large-scale monopolies, was the world’s richest man, and spent decades immersed in philanthropy that truly impacted the world. The author does a great job capturing details and telling stores making for a great book.
David Cummings on Startups 
Sounds a lot like Bill Gates
Great post about a great book. I read it a couple of years ago. A couple of things I remember:
– he had a strong partner, Henry Flagler, who played a big role in the success of Standard Oil behind the scenes and he did not get as famous as Rockefeller himself (although he donated heavily to a particular college, where they named a business school after his wife Kenan Flagler)
– he followed a rigid daily schedule with the goal of becoming 100 years old (he almost made it)
– in today’s money, he made about a billion dollar just in 1902 (tax free). Now that is FU money